Hello and welcome.
My name is Helen and this guided visualization is to help you relax,
Release any tension and let go of any fears or worries.
Let's begin by getting comfortable.
If you're sitting on a chair,
Make sure your feet are flat on the floor.
If you're seated on the floor,
Make sure you're not sitting in a draught and that you are comfortable.
Let's begin by checking our posture.
You may need to tilt your hips forward a little to ensure a nice straight spine and opening up your chest and abdomen so that they can move without constraint as you're breathing in and out.
Allow your shoulders to drop and relax.
Your arms hang loosely at your sides,
Your hands resting in your lap.
Check that your neck and head are continuing that nice straight spine.
Imagine a thread attached to your crown going upwards to a point above you where it's fixed,
Holding your head in place.
You may feel as though your head or your chin are poking forward.
Just gently check by touching your chin with your fingers and pushing it back slightly.
Relax your jaw,
Allowing your teeth to part a little and your tongue to rest comfortably in your mouth,
Its tip touching the roof of your mouth just behind your top teeth.
You may wish to close your eyes or you can keep them slightly open and gaze softly at a point about a few feet in front of you on the floor.
Now take your attention to your nose.
Breathing in,
Just notice how cool the air feels as it travels up through your nose and into your body.
And breathing out through your nose,
Notice how much warmer the air feels.
Breathing in,
Down into your chest,
Feeling your chest rise and fall as you exhale.
Now breathe in a little deeper and become aware of your rib cage and your abdomen expanding as you take that breath down into your body and contracting as you breathe out.
Breathing in,
Breathing out.
Feeling tension in all those small muscles around your mouth,
Your eyes and across your forehead.
You are now relaxed.
Imagine that you are standing on a beach looking out at a calm sea.
Its a warm day and you can feel the warmth of the sun on your body.
Cooled a little by a gentle breeze brushing your face.
You feel the soft dry sand beneath your toes of your bare feet.
You watch the sea as the waves roll in gently lapping the shore.
And you notice how a wave flows in and pauses then ebbs out and there is a small pause before the next wave rolls in.
As you are watching you allow your breathing to follow that ebb and flow.
You breathe in as the wave rolls in,
Pause and exhale as the wave ebbs out.
There is a small pause before the next breath and wave.
Watching the waves in and out.
Noticing your breath in and out.
Breathing in,
Breathing out with the rhythm of the sea.
As you are breathing in you notice the fragrance of the salty sea air.
And as you are standing there on the shore you can hear the sound as the water laps up on the beach and runs back to the sea.
You may hear birds singing,
Feeling the warmth of the sun on your body watching the waves.
You walk a little closer to the water and feel the change in the sand as you move from the dry soft sand to the cooler wetter firmer sand.
You feel your feet sinking slightly as the water washes over your feet feeling cool and as it flows back you notice that small pull of the sand beneath your feet.
The water cools you,
Cleanses you as it laps around your ankles.
Watching the waves in and out.
The sky above you is a little cloudy,
Some fluffy white clouds,
A few grey ones sitting there in the sky.
Imagine each cloud is a fear,
A worry or a tension that you are feeling right now.
And imagine that as the gentle breeze blows it moves the clouds dissipating them to reveal a clear blue sky and as it does it clears your mind.
Removing worry,
Anxiety,
Tension and fear.
Bringing you clarity of mind,
Calming your mind.
Watching the waves in and out.
Breathing with the waves in and out.
Breathing with the waves in and out.
Feeling the calmness of your mind.
Feeling relaxed,
Releasing any tension.
In and out.
In and out.
When you feel ready become aware of the floor beneath you.
You may wish to wiggle your fingers and toes.
Become aware of the seat supporting you.
Take a nice deep breath in and as you breathe out gently bring your awareness back into your room and slowly open your eyes allowing yourself to gaze softly at the floor until you feel fully back.
